Never Fear Read online

  I woke, startled by a chorus of whispers close to my ear. Grabbing Rosie, my pink bear, I hugged her to my chest and squeezed my eyes shut. But the whispers called and they were mad. They made me look. Lip trembling, I slowly opened my eyes and hissed in a sharp breath. I squeezed my legs together to keep from wetting the bed, but some of it leaked out anyway.

  Mama gave me the white mirror for my birthday. Five years old. Big girls don’t wet the bed. She’d said it was an antique floor mirror and very special. An heirloom, she’d called it. I’d loved it. Until… Until…

  I shivered out of the memory, dragging my focus back to the present.

  For as long as I could remember, I’d avoided mirrors at all costs and with good reason. Mirrors were so much more than reflective glass. Mirrors were gateways to Hell; a never-ending, living Hell.

  Public restrooms were a bitch. I’d learned the hard way to keep my head down and aim for the stall. Driving had brought a new set of challenges, but I’d conquered those too. The mirrors in my car were all pointed away from me. I’d practically become a contortionist when it came to keeping an eye on the traffic. And thank God for technology. If it weren’t for the camera on my phone and computer, I’d no doubt look like a frazzled nut on a daily basis.

  “Helloooo?” Livvy waved a hand in front of my face.

  “Just go in without me. If you hurry you can catch up with Adam and Chase.” They were no doubt waiting for a prime opportunity to jump out and scare the mess out of us; yet another reason I wasn’t going inside. I liked Chase, I really did. But sometimes his juvenile antics were enough to make me reconsider our status. Of course, then he’d say something in that sexy southern drawl and I’d find myself lost in his mesmerizing baby blues and flip the coin to the other side.

  Livvy grabbed my elbow and tugged me along. The beam of her flashlight bounced around, illuminating things I really didn’t want to see: reflective animal eyes at the edge of the clearing, splatters of unknown substance, a ripped sweatshirt hanging from the drooping branch of a dead tree.

  I fixed my gaze on one spot, which happened to be the thin layer of dust on my brand new Chucks. I dug my heels in, but the truth was, I didn’t want to stay out here alone any more than I wanted to go in, so I ended up trailing after her like a puppy learning to walk on a leash.

  “What kind of best friend would I be if I didn’t help you face your fear? Come on, girl.” Livvy turned and looked me dead in the eye. “You can do this.”

  Her expression was so serious, I almost believed her. But if fifteen years of therapy hadn’t cured me, I doubted her method would work.

  I stared at the broken lights haloing the giant clown mouth at the entrance and nearly tripped over my thumping heart. This was stupid. We shouldn’t be here.

  Here being a carnival ride graveyard smack dab in the middle of absolutely nowhere. When Chase had said he had something exciting planned for tonight, I sure as hell didn’t think it’d be something as warped as this.

  Chase had moved to Indiana three months ago. The wickedly handsome Georgia boy had immediately deemed our state and all its cornfields boring. He was an adrenaline junkie and he’d lured Adam, Livvy, and me into his world by dangling the idea of fun mixed with a bit of danger in front of us-not to mention his breath-taking looks. I had no doubt if he put his mind to it, he could sell crack to a priest. Usually, I went along with his adventures. I wasn’t about to be the odd man out. A ghost hunt had led to climbing the tallest water tower, which led to driving on the back roads at midnight with the headlights off, which led to jumping off the ledge at the quarry… blindfolded. Yeah, we’d done it all and somehow lived through it.

  Tonight was different though, and I could feel trepidation tightening the muscles in my neck.

  I should have stayed in the car. But we’d passed the last of the streetlights about five miles back, and then the wind started whistling through the trees and I got all girly.

  A screech owl’s shriek tore through the silence of the night like a banshee. I screamed loud enough to stumble from the force of the colliding sounds.

  “What the hell?”

  Ignoring Livvy, I pointed my flashlight toward the sky, sweat beading on my upper lip as I swept the beam back and forth like a deranged woman until I spotted the enormous bird sitting on a dangling car at the top of a massive, rusted Ferris wheel. He stared right back. As if he’d suddenly found his prey, he spread his wings and dive-bombed, swooping low enough that I ducked down and covered my head with my hands. I probably screamed again but I couldn’t hear anything over the pounding in my ears.

  Livvy barked out a laugh. “Jesus, you are so freaked out. You better not piss your pants. It’s a long ride back.”

  “Shut up.” I clenched the flashlight tight enough that my knuckles cracked. “You know what? I don’t want to do this.”

  “Yeah. You’ve said that.” She blew out a breath while her gaze ping-ponged between the fun house and my trembling limbs. “Look, nothing is going to happen to you. If it were ten in the morning rather than ten at night, you wouldn’t be so scared.”

  “Not true.”

  Livvy blinked at me, a technique she probably learned in her psych class. “True. Come on, don’t you want Chase to protect you from whatever creepies you think are inside? I know I can’t wait for Adam to guard me.” She lifted one blond brow and smiled. “All of me.”

  She had no idea what the creepies were capable of, but I did. Besides, if Chase had wanted to score tonight, he probably shouldn’t have ditched me at the car. At this point, I didn’t really care if he ever put his hands on me again. I just wanted to be done with it. “Whatever. Fine. I’ll go in, but I’m not going into the room with mirrors.”

  Livvy flashed a victorious smile. She and Adam had been dancing around each other for months now. I couldn’t believe she’d chosen tonight to seal the deal. Just thinking about them doing the nasty in a place like this made my skin crawl.

  “I mean it, Liv. No mirrors.” I took a deep breath and marched up the steps. Jaw clenched, I crawled through the barrel, expecting it to spin and dump me in an ungraceful heap. The drum didn’t move. How could it? There was no electricity out here to power anything. I briefly wondered if I’d feel better if everything had been lit up before discarding the thought. Nothing, aside from getting back in the car and driving home, could make me feel better.

  Livvy shoved my butt. “Keep going.”

  I swiveled my head and shot her a don’t-mess-with-me look. “I’m going. Just give me a second.” Hello? Major panic attack ensuing here. I rolled out of the barrel and stood, whacking my head on the low ceiling. “Ouch.”

  “You okay?”

  “I’m fine.” I rubbed my scalp. “Watch your head. The ceiling is really low in here.” I took a step and promptly fell on my ass. And the floor moved. Awesome.

  With a curse, I shoved off the ground and struggled to remain upright. Every step I took tipped the section beneath me and I never knew which direction it would go. Liv started giggling. This time, her laughter was laced with a tinge of nerves. I didn’t even bother to hide my smile, which wasn’t very nice of me, but I wasn’t feeling especially magnanimous at the moment.

  “It’s so quiet in here,” she said, her voice taking on a tone I’d never heard from her before. “I wonder where they are?”

  So, the unflappable Olivia wasn’t so fierce after all. Noted and filed away for future reference. One never knew when they’d need to blackmail their best friend.

  I took another step and my knee buckled as the black and white checkered floor slid to the right. I busted one hell of a Twister move and caught myself with both hands. I was so unsteady on my feet, I couldn’t stay balanced enough to point the flashlight to see how much farther we had to go to get out of this room. Or which room of tricks would be next. Maybe I’d luck out and this funhouse wouldn’t have any mirrors. With the way my night was going, I figured the chances of that happening were slim to none.

&nb
sp; “I don’t know where they are, but you’re going to have to go around me.” She owed me. The least she could do was go first and play scout.

  Breathless, Livvy crouched next to me and plastered her cheek to mine. A flash of light temporarily blinded me. She gave me a smacking kiss on the same cheek and pulled back.

  “What are you doing?” I squinted into the darkness as dots danced around my vision and saw her typing on her phone. “Uh uh. No way. You are not posting that.” I wiped the sweat from my forehead with the back of one hand and reached for her phone with the other.

  “Already did.” She smiled and slid her phone into her back pocket. “If we’re going to die I want my last update to be a picture of you and me.”

  How sweet. “We’re not going to die.” But even as I said the words my heart dipped to the pit of my stomach. In my dreams, I always died in a place like this… in a room full of mirrors. “Maybe we can just wait here for them to come back out.”

  My suggestion fell flat. When she didn’t answer, I lifted my flashlight and illuminated her face.

  Livvy sat there, one brow lifted, sporting a full on pout. “What kind of fun would that be? Come on.” She moved past me. “You can be my wing-man. But when we find them, distract your boy so I can be alone with Adam. Those two drive me nuts with their bromance.”

  “I can’t believe you’re really going through with this. Don’t you want your first time with him to be somewhere a little, hell, I don’t know, cleaner and less creepy?”

  “I’m a modern woman, Vanessa. Who needs romance when they can have excitement?”

  I had a feeling there was a lot more to it than that. Like the fact that they might not really like each other if it weren’t for all of the amped-up shenanigans. My opposition stuck in my throat when Livvy shrieked.

  I froze. My gaze darted but all I saw were shadows. No Livvy. Her scream echoed and then faded as if she were falling through a rabbit hole. She erupted into a fit of giggles somewhere in the distance and relief swept through me.

  The laughter abruptly stopped on something that sounded a lot like a gasp followed by a moan.

  “Liv?”

  Silence.

  I scooted forward. “Where are you?”

  My foot caught on a ledge and I pitched forward. I scrambled for purchase and lost the battle and my flashlight. Momentum careened me over the edge and, the next thing I knew, I was whizzing head first down a steep incline. I landed in a pit of balls and might have laughed if I weren’t being suffocated by half-deflated, mildew-saturated balls.

  Flailing like a fish out of water didn’t help. I forced myself to calm down, breathed through the sea of darkness attempting to pull me under. I hoped to God no one caught me on camera. I would never live this down. After several grunts and some awkward maneuvering, I managed to right myself. Moonlight filtered in through the broken windows allowing me to see enough to know that I was alone in the pit surrounded by about ten thousand rainbow colored balls. Finding my flashlight would be nearly impossible.

  “Livvy?” Where the hell was she? “Chase? Adam? Come on, guys. This isn’t funny anymore.” Never had been.

  Not one of them answered my call.

  I jumped at the sound of whispers coming from my right. It had to be them because the possibility of it being anyone else wasn’t something I wanted to consider. I had no problem believing Chase and Adam would punk me, but Livvy? That stung. If I thought I could climb back up the slide, I’d leave the way I came and wait for them to grow up. The incline was too steep and I’d never make it. I turned a full circle, looking for another way out, which proved futile. I had to go through the door on the right.

  My breaths came out fast and shallow. I had no idea what trick the next room would bring.

  “Mama?” I could barely hear myself. I cleared my throat and tried calling for her again. “Mama, help me.”

  The whispers turned into laughter. Goosebumps covered my arms and I pulled the blanket tighter around me.

  Fog poured out of the mirror and filled my room. Mean faces swirled in the fog. I quietly slid Rosie under the blanket to protect her.

  The fog disappeared and I saw a bony hand reach out of the mirror and crook a finger at me.

  I clamped my eyes shut and screamed until my throat hurt.

  Then the blood came and Mama went away.

  Even now, all these years later, the fear I’d felt latched on to my heart and squeezed. Pursing my lips, I slowly blew out a breath. And then another until the paralysis eased.

  I basically swam through the ball pit, latched onto the ledge and dragged myself up. With noodly legs, I inched toward the door as bead after bead of sweat raced down my spine. Nothing but darkness beckoned from the other side of the door. Something brushed against my ankle and I jumped. I looked down expecting to see a rat or a snake. Nothing.

  Fighting off a case of major heebie-jeebies, I swallowed hard and stepped through the doorway. My back hit the wall and strong hands gripped my shoulders. Without thinking, I twisted and jerked my knee straight up, and met a whole lot of air.

  “Fuck, Vanessa. I need my balls, babe.”

  I had to blink back tears before I could respond. For the first time tonight, I was happy to be shrouded in darkness. Falling apart wasn’t something I wanted my boyfriend to see. “You want to keep your balls?” I asked, faking bravado. “Don’t sneak up on people, Chase. Not cool.” I couldn’t keep the quivering out of my voice.

  He trailed his fingers down my arm. “I was just having a little fun.” He leaned in. “You remember how to have fun, don’t you?”

  I couldn’t deny the effect he had on me. I compartmentalized and labeled it a mixture of relief that I was no longer alone and the fact that Chase could be alluringly persuasive when he wanted to be. His lips found mine and I sank into his kiss, clutching his shirt in my fists. If we kept kissing, I could forget about everything else. His heart thumped hard in his chest, a mixture of adrenaline and hormones no doubt.

  He broke the kiss and pulled me deeper into the room.

  “Wait. Where are we going?”

  “We haven’t seen everything yet.”

  I let him drag me along until I came back to my senses. I wrenched my hand from his and stopped. “I’m done. Take me home, Chase.” The room was so dark I felt like the walls were pressing in on me. I shouldn’t have been so hasty in moving away from him.

  “Not yet.”

  I whipped around. How had he moved behind me and I hadn’t heard him? “Knock it off.”

  “Come on, Vanessa. Aren’t you even the least bit turned on by this?”

  I turned again and bumped into him. He wrapped his arms around me and held on. “You don’t get it,” I said softly, leaning my forehead against his chest. “I’ve been up for everything we’ve done this summer, but… I can’t do this, Chase.”

  He tugged me closer and I thought he was finally beginning to understand.

  “What the hell is taking so long? Hurry up and get the fuck in here, bro.”

  Adam.

  Chase hoisted me over his shoulders and took off. I pounded on his back. “Put me down!”

  “It’s just one more room, babe.” He stumbled but caught himself before we both went down. “You can do this.”

  If one more person said that to me…

  Chase turned a corner and stopped. My breath stuck in my throat as I slid down his body until my feet touched the floor.

  I squeezed my eyes shut but I’d already seen too much.

  “Breathe, babe,” Chase whispered in my ear.

  I wanted to breathe but the air kept getting lodged in my throat.

  “Olivia told us about your mirror issues.”

  My eyes flashed open and I searched the room for the person who was supposed to be my best friend. All I saw were reflections of me, trembling hands, mascara streaks on my pale cheeks. Candles were everywhere, the light playing tricks in tandem with the warped mirrors.

  Anger mixed with fear
and I nearly passed out from the intensity of it all. They’d set me up. All of them.

  Chase walked up behind me. “Say it, Vanessa.”

  My lips trembled but I couldn’t look away. “Say what?”

  He smiled and his blue eyes twinkled in the candlelight. “The five words. Say them and you won’t be afraid anymore.”

  What was he talking about? To them this was just another stupid game, a crazy way to get high. To me it was so much more.

  “Here,” he said. “Let us help you.”

  Adam appeared next to Chase. He pulled a rag from his back pocket and wrapped it around his hand. Then he slammed his fist into one of the mirrors.

  I nearly choked on fear. The mirrors wouldn’t be happy. They’d get retribution. They always did.

  Chase picked up a shard of glass and sliced it across his left palm.

  I shook my head. “What… what are you doing?”

  He leaned in and kissed my temple. “I’m fixing you.”

  Fixing me? I wasn’t broken. I blinked hard and saw Livvy standing next to Adam. How could she have done this?

  “I only wanted to help you. Don’t be mad.”

  I shook my head again. Her voice didn’t sound right.

  Chase dipped his finger in the blood pooling on his palm. “Five words, babe. Just five words.”

  He reached out and swirled his finger over the mirror in front of me, then stepped back and grinned like he’d just solved all the problems of the world.

  Mirror, mirror on the wall

  The bloody letters blurred until I could hardly make them out. Tears streamed down my face and my veins grew cold. “You don’t know what you’ve done,” I choked out.

  “Just say the words.”

  Adam laughed and Chase clapped him on the back. Livvy looked nervous and I wanted to scream. But screaming hadn’t helped before. They’d come for me then and I knew they’d come for me now.

  “Fine,” Adam said. “If you won’t say it, we will.” Nodding, he glanced at Chase and Livvy.

  “Don’t.” I swiped at the tears running down my cheeks. “Don’t do it. Please,” I begged.